Study to evaluate Mae Valley traffic impacts
Late-afternoon traffic on the Hansen Road overpass. Growth in Mae Valley and its impact on traffic along Hansen Road and the entire area is the subject of a traffic study being conducted by Moses Lake city officials.
Cheryl Schweizer/Columbia Basin Herald
Drivers go back and forth from Mae Valley over the Hansen Road overpass. Moses Lake city officials are conducting a study to determine the impact of growth in Mae Valley on traffic in the area.
Drivers on the Hansen Road overpass. A study to determine the impact of growth in Mae Valley and its impact on traffic is being conducted by consultants hired by the city of Moses Lake.
MOSES LAKE — A study to determine the impact of growth on traffic in the Mae Valley area of Moses Lake should be completed by June.
Moses Lake City Manager Allison Williams said the study is part of the city’s updated comprehensive plan. The overall update started in 2020 and looks at anticipated growth and development in the next 20 years. The plan will establish a baseline of the current traffic, Williams said, and make projections for growth in Mae Valley through about 2040.
Mae Valley has experienced a lot of growth, including residential developments around The Links at Moses Pointe on Westshore Drive and Moses Lake Golf Club on Road F.2 Northeast. A 33-home development is under construction on Westshore Drive, and another development is proposed along Westlake Road.
In addition, plans were submitted for a new convenience store and truck stop, Love’s Travel Stop, on the south side of Interstate 90.
Currently, the closest access for drivers in Mae Valley who want to go to the rest of Moses Lake is the Hansen Road overpass. The new Love’s Travel Stop will be off freeway exit No. 174, where Hansen Road turns into South Frontage Road West, then becomes Idaho Road. Idaho Road turns into Pritchard Road, which is the access to I-90.
The engineers conducting the study are working with the Washington Department of Transportation, Williams said.
The study will look at current traffic patterns, making some adjustments for the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. Engineers will analyze the impact of the projected traffic increases.
The study will evaluate whether the existing structure is adequate for the traffic, now and in the future, and if not, what improvements will be required, Williams said.
The results also will help define what the city can accommodate. If more development is allowed in Mae Valley, the study will determine the traffic improvements required.
The study will include what Williams called “planning level cost estimates.” Those estimates will be factored into the city’s planning process, she said. The improvements in Mae Valley have to be factored in with other projects, such as the planned rebuilding of Valley Road.
“It is expensive,” she said.
City officials will evaluate funding sources, including property taxes, the city’s transportation benefit district, and allocation from the fuel tax. State funding also may be available, she said, and possibly transportation grants.
Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.
